Dany Dubé really believes in a Senators move to Quebec City
The possibility of the Ottawa Senators coming to Quebec City to play five games next year has been the subject of much discussion in recent days.
Is this another NHL strategy to use Quebec City to put pressure on a struggling team or to test the market for a possible Senators move?
During the second intermission of the Canadiens-Hurricanes game on Thursday night, CH game analyst Dany Dubé commented on the Senators' situation and discussed their future in the federal capital.
He mentioned at the outset that the Senators' current situation is similar to that of the Atlanta Trashers shortly before the team was moved to Winnipeg in 2011.
Dubé also notes that unless they get a new arena in the short term, which he thinks is unlikely, the Senators are unlikely to stay in Ottawa for the long term.
But, in term of the other NHL owners:
With that in mind, the analyst believes that a Senators move to Quebec City seems a realistic scenario under the circumstances, including the fact that the daughters of the late owner, Eugene Melnyk, are now in charge of the Senators and she could have a financial partnership in the venture.
When the Carolina Hurricanes were sold in 2017 to Tom Dundon, former owner Peter Karmanos remained a minority owner of the team only to jump ship a few years later. This situation could happen with the Senators, again according to Dubé.
However, a franchise move is very often a last resort scenario for professional sports leagues in North America and the NHL will do everything in its power to keep the franchise in Ottawa.
But with the initiative of regular season games at the Videotron Centre next year coming from Gary Bettman himself, there may be hope on the horizon that eventually, Quebec City could once again find itself on the NHL's radar.
| POLL | ||
In your opinion, what would be the most realistic option for the return of the NHL to Quebec City? | ||
| An expansion | 79 | 20.5 % |
| The Arizona Coyotes' move | 221 | 57.4 % |
| The Ottawa Senators' move | 85 | 22.1 % |
| List of polls | ||
